- 1[uncountable] the state or fact of being real or living. or of being present I was unaware of his existence until today. This is the oldest Hebrew manuscript in existence. Pakistan came into existence as an independent country in 1947. a crisis that threatens the industry's continued existence
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- 2[countable] a way of living, especially when this is difficult or boring The family endured a miserable existence in a cramped apartment. We led a poor but happy enough existence as children. They eke out a precarious existence (= they have hardly enough money to live on). The peasants depend on a good harvest for their very existence (= in order to continue to live).
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